And that's it, folks. The orchestra applauds and Trifonov takes a bow.

What a fascinating process this has been. I've attended plenty of rehearsals in my day, but never one where the composer was also the soloist and the orchestra was reading the work for the very first time. I look forward a great deal to hearing the work in full on April 23.

In the meantime, I've got about an hour to get home, change and grab a bite to eat before heading off to another concert: night two of the Takacs Quartet's Bartok cycle on the Cleveland Chamber Music Society. Thanks for reading, everyone.

6:21 p.m.: A sweeping, Romantic solo for Trifonov grows in intensity. Again I hear evidence that Trifonov was inspired by Rachmaninoff. They play right up to the point where the finale will begin.

6:18 p.m.: We're back to the bright, two-handed melody. Lots of mystery in it. The melody turns in several directions I wouldn't have expected.

6:15 p.m.: Trifonov asks the strings to play pianissimo (very quietly) around measures 8 to 13. It seems he wants to draw attention to a clarinet melody.

6:13 p.m.: They're starting the movement over again. There's that lovely pattern again in the violas and low strings. Smirnoff tweaks the balance so the violas aren't quite so prominent.

6:11 p.m.: We're nearing the end of the movement, which it seems will eventually lead directly into the finale. The finale here is marked Allegro con brio. There's been a long, steady accumulation of energy and momentum.

6:07 p.m.: Smirnoff points out with admiration that this is Trifonov's first composition with full orchestration.

6:03 p.m.: Fitch and Trifonov ask for a particular percussion stroke at measure 58. Smirnoff likens it to Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra.

5:58 p.m.: Now the music changes character dramatically. Trifonov takes over with dense, churning chords and the orchestrations thins out as he unleashes a torrent. The trumpets and trombones are prominent in the fray.

5:53 p.m.: A new section, marked Agitato, commences at measure 42. The violas have a rolling, repetitive pattern - mirrored by the clarinets - that serves as a foundation for a bright, two-handed melody in the piano. They work through the ensuing bars several times to get the balance and phrasing just right.

5:50 p.m.: Trifonov enters with a lengthy, rhapsodic solo passage that yields briefly to the violas. Now the flutes, with a mysterious phrase high above.

5:48 p.m.: They agree to change the legato marking to a two-note, gently-rocking slur pattern instead. I'm not reviewing here, but I like the change.

5:45 p.m.: The slow movement, marked Andante, has begun with a low, legato line in the violas, cellos and basses. A wistful clarinet melody comes in a few bars later.

5:41 p.m.: And we're back. The orchestra is regathering onstage. Trifonov is back at the piano, working privately with his composition teacher, Keith Fitch. I should maybe point out here that the concerto is a commission from CIM.

5:31 p.m.: The end approaches again. Now I'm ready for it. It's a bold, swift gesture that is sure to come as a surprise when listeners hear it for the first time. Smirnoff calls for a 10-minute break before rehearsing the second movement.

5:27 p.m.: What I'm hearing now is sweeping and cinematic. It pulls the listener along easily in the manner of Rachmaninoff.

5:22 p.m.: Apologies for the delay. Had to take a moment to upload a photo. The performance has continued several moments now without interruption.

5:18 p.m. We've passed the tricky measure 160. The music now reminds me fleetingly of Dukas' "Sorcerer's Apprentice." Trifonov has a swirling solo that is wonderful to hear uninterrupted this time.

5:14 p.m.: Wrong about that. They stop at measure 142. Apparently the trumpets missed their entrance.

5:11 p.m.: They're playing through the movement again, this time -- it seems -- without pause. It's much easier now to get a sense of the music as a whole.

5:08 p.m.: Smirnoff asks Trifonov's teacher, pianist Sergei Babayan, who is also in the audience, for his opinion. He doesn't seem to have any comments. Trifonov also chats quietly with the concertmaster.

5:05 p.m. The first movement ends dramatically, with a kind of hammer-stroke in both piano and orchestra. The orchestra applauds.

5:01 p.m.: The music picks up momentum at measure 299. Smirnoff has the orchestra play through this area a few times, all while Trifonov plays a fiercely difficult solo passage.

4:58 p.m.: Stormy again. At measure 270, after a sweeping, lyrical interlude, the music is marked Presto and Trifonov enters with rich, powerful chords.

4:54 p.m.: Measure 256 appears to have a problem. There appears to be a wrong note written in the horn part.

4:51 p.m.: Trifonov now has a lovely and very tender solo, which the orchestra soon joins. Trifonov told me earlier he tried hard to make the orchestra an active participant in the music, and this section certainly bears out that effort.

4:49 p.m.: They work through measures 225-230 several times. They collectively decide to put a mezzo-piano dynamic marking at measure 227, during the trumpet solo.

4:46 p.m.: It's not marked in the score, but Smirnoff asks the basses to put on mutes at measure 231. He also asks the trumpeter playing a solo at measure 225 to make it "bigger," and gets the result he wanted.

4:41 p.m. There's an interesting, skittish section at measure 205, with the violins playing col legno and the violas pizzicato. Smirnoff rehearses it several times, as it leads seamlessly to a keyboard entrance.

4:38 p.m.: The music is picking up speed ahead of a sparkling, high piano solo, and Smirnoff tells the musicians they're falling behind.

4:35 p.m.: A trumpeter in the orchestra asks Trifonov where his mute should come out in a prominent brass line.

4:33 p.m. There's a sharp change of meter at measure 163, and Smirnoff works through the transition several times.

4:30 p.m.: Another mood change. Now everything is sweet, quiet and lyrical. There's a prominent, high flute part. What's amazing is that the orchestra is essentially sight-reading. Smirnoff recommends that parts of the flute music be switched to piccolo.

4:27 p.m.: We're now at bar 127, and things have slowed down. There are prominent castanets in the percussion. Trifonov's part has become more stately, and has built to a forceful peak.

4:24 p.m.: Trifonov has made his entrance. Wow. It's stormy, fast music, and seems wildly virtuosic. This is going to make a bold first impression.

4:22 p.m.: They're working on about the first 25 bars or so. The music is still purely orchestral at this point.

4:19 p.m.: The orchestra just played the first few measures of the first movement. It's dark, brooding music, in a low register. The marking in the score is Andante.

4:17 p.m.: Trifonov just delivered a brief word of introduction.

4:15 p.m.: Hello and welcome
to this live coverage of Daniil Trifonov's first piano concerto. I'm in Kulas
Hall at the Cleveland Institute of Music, and will soon be watching and
listening as Trifonov, a student here and an accomplished pianist and composer,
plays through the work for the first time with the CIM Orchestra and conductor
Joel Smirnoff.

This is a special occasion
indeed. Composers rarely allow the media to hear their work before the official
premiere – In this case, April 23, here at CIM. But in this instance, the
school convinced Trifonov to open the doors and allow me to witness the
creative process in action.

A few facts before things get
underway. Trifonov is a world-renowned pianist, winner of two of the most
prestigious contests in the keyboard world: the Tchaikovsky and Rubinstein
Competitions. All along, however, he's also found time for composition, and
today we'll be hearing his largest work to date and first orchestral work to
receive a performance.

The final work will be in
three movements. Today, though, we'll only be hearing the first and second movements.
The rehearsal will last approximately two-and-a-half hours. I'll be adding new
observations in this post every few moments, so please check back often.

Looks like things are about
to get started. The orchestra has gathered on stage and Trifonov is getting
settled at the piano. Stay tuned.

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